Research Briefs: HIV increases heart attack risk

HIV infection increases the risk of having a heart attack, say US researchers. They compared data on 4,000 HIV-infected patients, aged 18–84 with more than one million people without HIV. Overall, the risk of heart attack almost doubled in those with HIV and was almost tripled among women. The findings indicate that those infected with HIV should be assessed for cardiovascular risk factors (J Clin Endocrinol Metab Online 2007).